Donald Trump’s Second Inauguration Draws Fewer Viewers
Donald Trump’s second inauguration drew fewer viewers than his first and Joe Biden’s four years ago, according to Nielsen figures released on Tuesday. The ceremony was viewed by 24.59 million people across 15 networks from 10:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. ET.
The viewership peaked at 12:15 p.m. when Trump delivered his inaugural address, with 17.4 million viewers aged 55 and above, 4.67 million aged 35-54, and 1.43 million aged 18-34.
Compared to Biden’s 2021 inauguration, which drew 33.76 million viewers, and Trump’s 2017 first inauguration, which drew 30.64 million, this year’s ceremony had a significantly lower viewership.
Fox News led the coverage, with 10.67 million viewers, followed by ABC News with 4.85 million, NBC News with 4.58 million, CBS News with 4.35 million, CNN with 1.8 million, and MSNBC with 880,000. In the 25-54 demographic, Fox News had 2.09 million viewers, NBC News had 1.22 million, ABC News had 1.12 million, CBS News had 966,000, CNN had 563,000, and MSNBC had 106,000.
The ratings reflect partisanship, with Fox News drawing the most viewers among the major networks, while CNN and MSNBC drew the largest and second-largest audiences, respectively, during Biden’s 2021 inauguration.
Second presidential inaugurations tend to draw lower viewership than the first, with Barack Obama’s first inauguration in 2009 averaging 37.8 million viewers and his second in 2013 averaging 20.6 million.